The life he wanted
The meeting room was noisy, more bustling than a vegetable market on the street, but overall, the New Army Officer still held opposing views. Of course, some experienced and insightful Officer realized the deeper meaning behind the war, so it wasn't that no one supported Yago.
Some radical young Officer even suggested that they should take advantage of the Marleyan' predicament and attack them from behind, both to avenge the Marley' enslavement of their Eldia compatriots and to announce to the world that the Eldians have returned to the world stage!
It must be said that this idea really stirred up quite a few people, with more than half of the Officer turning their attention to Yago had been sitting silently at the head of the table.
The struggle between the Imperialists and Restorationists factions on Paradis Island had a wide reach. Although the Imperialists, led by Arno, launched a Coup, the Coup ended in a farcical manner, with the Imperialists losing everything due to a single misstep.
Even some members of the Imperialists suspected that Arno was a spy sent by the Restorationists, and directly incited them to go all in, ultimately resulting in their complete annihilation. In any case, the Imperialists failed, and its influence in the army was completely reshuffled. The remaining Nobility forces were thoroughly purged from the army, and the reforms of the New Army did not need these pedantic Nobility. The lower-ranking Soldiers were all randomly incorporated into the New Army and received new ideological and political education and reform every day.
With the decline of the Imperialists, the Restorationists seized the opportunity to grow rapidly. It can be said that on Paradis Island today, only the Restorationists remains dominant and is expanding day by day.
More than three-quarters of the Soldiers in the New Army accepted the ideology of the Restorationists. This was thanks to the Eldia Revival Army's core members from the Marley Capital. In addition, the Restorationists' slogan of restoring the Eldia People was much gentler and more righteous than the Imperialists's slogan of re-establishing the Eldia Empire. The common people were more accepting, understanding, and even supportive of it.
The rapid expansion of the Restorationists also led to a dramatic increase in Yago's power and status. Even though Yago is not yet twenty years old, the power and glory Eldia Revivalists these two identities bring to Yago Eldia Revival Army too great.
In the eyes of some rank-and-file Soldiers, Yago has even been somewhat deified, which is why there was no opposition when Yago insisted on taking on the position of Commander-in-Chief of Paradis Island. However, such power also brought some trouble to Yago. When the Imperialists rose on Paradis Island, the high-ranking members of the Paradis Island Parliament introduced and supported the Restorationists and the Imperialists to balance the two factions.
However, the higher-ups were also unhappy to see the Restorationists now dominating Paradis Island, and they were even more wary of Yago. It was ironic that a bunch of old foxes, whose combined age was several hundred, would be wary of a young upstart who wasn't even twenty years old.
Prime Pyxis Prime Minister approached Yago, directly expressing the Parliament's apprehension towards Yago. However, Yago simply laughed it off, leaving the Parliament with no choice but to remain cautious. Leaving aside Yago's personal influence within the New Army, the parliament's high-ranking officials dared not harbor any other thoughts, especially considering the 100,000 Eldia Revival Army Parliament across the coast. Moreover, the Orient nations currently assisting Paradis Island's development also have close ties with Yago.
Prime Minister Pyxis was fully aware of this, but he didn't care at all. Why? Was it because of his trust in Yago's character or some other reason? No one knew. Pyxis knew was that the Wine from across the coast in Yago's office tasted quite good, and he was determined to take it all with him when he left.
Prime Minister Pyxis has never been a pedantic person. If he were, he wouldn't have helped Erwin and the Survey Corps launch Coup back then. In his heart, fine wine and the future of the Eldians are the most important things.
Age aside, based on Yago's abilities, Pyxis believed that even if Yago were to establish a warlord dictatorship, it wouldn't be such a bad thing. He even thought it would be fine for Yago to inherit the Throne. What difference does it make who sits on the Throne? Wouldn't it be better to have someone more capable? After all, the little Queen on the Throne is always thinking about skipping work.
But Prime Minister Pyxis was somewhat surprised by Yago's convening of a high-level military meeting today.
Logically speaking, if Yago wanted to start a war, there was no need to convene this so-called high-level military conference. Yago could ignore the Officer's disagreements, and the rank-and-file Soldiers all supported Yago. Whether or not to start a war was just a matter of Yago's decision.
But it's intriguing that Yago has now initiated a meeting to negotiate; is he making concessions?
In other words, Yago was indeed making concessions. The power and glory he possessed were not what Yago wanted, nor was the position of leader of the Restorationists and the Restoration Army. As for warlord dictatorship or even the Throne, Yago had never even considered it.
If Yago had to say what he wanted, Yago would want a nine-to-five job with plenty of time off, a high salary and little work, where he could spend every day with Annie, help Annie take care of the children, and care for his parents. That's the life Yago wanted.
But like the power he carried, he had to face his Fate. Only Yago change it. In his memory, Big Eren desperately activated the Rumbling to destroy the world, sacrificing his life for his Comrade and loved ones, while the Eldia People were gradually destroyed in their madness.
Yago couldn't bear to watch the scenes from Big Eren's Memories unfold, couldn't bear to see his loved ones Comrade die before his eyes, couldn't bear to watch the Eldia People perish. Therefore, the burden of changing all of this Fate rested on his shoulders alone. He had no one to confide in, and Yago didn't have many choices.
If—and I mean if— Yago were to face the same choice as Eren in the future, what would he choose?
Yago questioned his own heart, but after a moment, Yago couldn't help but chuckle and whispered, "What am I thinking? I'm very selfish, do I even need to think about that?"
"Commander, please share your thoughts!" a white-haired female Officer, formerly from the Garrison Regiment and now one of the New Army's Section Commander, asked directly.
Upon seeing the Officer, Yago was momentarily taken aback, as he vaguely recognized Officer. During the Trost Recapture Battle, when Eren's Titan identity was revealed, a group of Garrison Soldiers clamored to eliminate Eren as a threat. It seemed that the dashing Section Commander Rico before him was one of them?
Yago was slightly surprised that Rico had joined the New Army.
"My opinion? My opinion is very clear: join the war and defeat the Far East," Yago said with a smile.
(It's the final season, and we're all waiting for an ending we already know, just to say to that boy who spent his life chasing freedom: Take care on your journey, Eren.)